Washington Sweeps Boulders Powered by Seven-Run Fifth
WASHINGTON, Pa. (May 18) - The Washington Wild Things completed their home-opening series sweep over the New York Boulders on a Coors Light Brew Crew Thursday night at Wild Things Park, fueled by a seven-run fifth inning to take an 8-2 victory.
Washington improved to 5-1 with the series sweep while New York drops down to a 2-4. Kobe Foster was on the bump for the Wild Things on Thursday and was awarded the win, his first of the season. He finished his outing with six innings pitched, two earned runs, three hits and five strikeouts.
Foster would get off to a rocky start for Washington after allowing two hits and issuing two walks to the Boulders in the first frame, which included an RBI double from designated hitter Pat Kivlehan to drive in the first run of the game. New York (2-4) added on with a sacrifice fly from second baseman Tucker Nathans in the following plate appearance, which scored a second run and put New York ahead 2-0 in the first half inning alone.
The Wild Things gained momentum with a walk and a hit in the bottom of the third, which was capped off by an RBI single into left field from outfielder Wagner Lagrange, giving Washington its first run of the night. Following the run, the Boulders’ scoring drought continued for a third-straight frame and Washington was also held scoreless going into the fifth inning.
Washington immediately capitalized on two new relief pitchers in the bottom half, Brandon Backman and Jake Ramezzana, drawing three walks and a hit by pitch to load the bases and score the tying run. In the next two plate appearances, a two-RBI single from Novoa and a double play would break the game open for Washington, who scored four runs in the bottom of the fifth to that point to jump ahead 5-2. The third relief pitcher of the inning for the Boulders, Andy Hammond, couldn’t slow down the seven-run barrage in the fifth for the Wild Things, as catcher JC Santini would rope a bases-clearing triple to center, extending the Washington lead to 8-2.
Washington will head back on the road for its next series, facing off against the Tri-City Valleycats in Troy, New York May 19-21. First pitch for Friday’s game is set for 6:30 p.m.
